South Yarra is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melbourne and Stonnington local government areas. South Yarra recorded a population of 25,028 at the 2021 census.
Punt Road divides the suburb between Stonnington (east) and Melbourne (west). The main shopping region of South Yarra runs along Toorak Road and Chapel Street. Trade along these two arteries are focused on trendy and upmarket shopping, restaurants, nightclubs and cafe culture. The area of South Yarra centred along Commercial Road was for several decades one of Melbourne's gay villages.
South Yarra is also home to some of Melbourne's most prestigious residential addresses. Residential land price records (per square metre) have been set by properties in Domain Road, Walsh Street and Fairlie Court.
History
South Yarra was originally inhabited by the Wurundjeri tribe of the Kulin nation.
The area was settled by European settlers in the 1830s, around the time of the establishment of Melbourne. The first sale of land by the Crown in Prahran area took place on 10 June 1840 when land bounded by Kooyong Road, Gardiners Creek (Yarra River). Gardiners Creek Road (now Toorak Road) and Glenferrie Road was sold. The purchasers included Jane Hill (the widow of pastoralist David Hill), the Langhorne Bros. (the nephews of Captain William Lonsdale), Capt. John Browne and James Jackson. During the 1840s, it became popular with wealthy citizens of Melbourne as a suburban retreat from the town. Several large houses were built and, together with neighbouring Toorak, it maintained its upper-class reputation into the post-World War II period. South Yarra Post Office was open briefly in 1854, then reopened on 21 June 1858.
During the 1920s and 1930s, many of the large gardens of the older mansions were subdivided and blocks of flats became a feature of the area. From the 1930s, the area around Park Street, where large numbers of flats had been built, became a popular neighbourhood for middle-class homosexuals; at that time an illegal subculture in the state of Victoria.
The building of apartment buildings, particularly around South Yarra railway station, continued into the 1960s and 1970s and today South Yarra is one of the most densely populated suburbs in Melbourne.
On 12 October 1988, police officers Steven Tynan and Damian Eyre were murdered in Walsh Street, South Yarra.
On 8 July 2002, the Salt nightclub in Daly Street was the site of a dispute which resulted in the murder of three men. On 19 September 2005, seven men were found guilty of murder, in the Supreme Court of Victoria. The nightclub was particularly notorious for criminal activity and was finally shut down.
Population
In the 2016 census, there were 25,147 people in South Yarra. 51.1% of people were born in Australia. The next most common countries of birth were China 5.7%, England 4.5%, New Zealand 3.4%, India 2.2% and Malaysia 1.6%. 63.8% of people spoke only English at home. Other languages spoken at home included Mandarin 6.3%, Cantonese 1.6%, Greek 1.5%, Spanish 1.4% and Russian 1.4%. The most common responses for religion in South Yarra were No Religion 42.6% and Catholic 16.0%.
Local landmarks
South Yarra has several local attractions. Perhaps the best known is Chapel Street. The South Yarra section of the famous street is the most fashionable and upmarket end. A major landmark is The Jam Factory, old factories converted into an upmarket shopping centre and cinemas. The Como Centre is a large shopping centre on the corner of Toorak and Chapel Streets, which combines with an office building, South Yarra's tallest, which houses the headquarters for ATV-10 and Global Television's TV production facilities.
The Prahran Market, located in South Yarra, is one of Melbourne's most popular and historic fresh produce markets.
Toorak Road runs off Chapel Street and although not known as well as Toorak Village, is a popular strip that contains a wide range of shops.
There are also several heritage registered buildings in South Yarra, including the Melbourne High School (1928), the former railway station building (1874) and post office (1893).